PUZZLES
FOR MAGAZINES & NEWSPAPERSCapture the attention of your readers with clever
contents

Why
our puzzles are unique

According
to the poll of a representative sample of 1000 readers,
conducted by an important magazine, only 13 percent of
the readers answered "never" to the question "do
you buy a newspaper just to do the puzzles?". That
confirms that puzzles are important features in a publication
and can be a valuable means to build up a loyal audience.

If
you need original, involving visual puzzles to captivate
and entertain a particular, or informed audience, then
look no further... For over 17 years we have been editing
articles and columns on optical
illusions, curiosities and paradoxes from
the world of science. Our puzzles and games demand the
attention of readers, involving them in optical experiments
and deduction, fun and easy to execute, they teach them
to distrust their own immediate senses and first impressions.

Our
experience and uniqueness in the field of games
culture, along with our competence in rendering
accessible, themes which would normally be left to the
experts because of their supposed complexity, has brought
us to collaborate with authoritative
newspapers and magazines in the field of the diffusion
of knowledge and entertainment.

What
kind of puzzles we supply

The
success of an Archimedes Lab visual puzzle is due in large
part to 4 important ingredients: a neat
illustration, a short text, a pinch of humor, and an exhaustive
solution accompanied, if needed, with a step-by-step explanation
and a clear diagram. We also explain why it is not possible,
sometimes, to resolve a puzzle: the reader can then begin
to understand the common misdirections that mislead their
cognitive senses, and understand better the conditioning
or 'mental blocks' that prevent us from finding a solution.

We
don't just 'do' games, we offer (re)creative entertainment that
sharpens the mind and the critical sense, and also a philosophy
of life: a simple and concrete way to improve oneself and
to see the world from a positive side, conserving self-irony
and a fair critical detachment. We create involving and
original puzzle content for magazines, newspapers, ads,
packaging and promotions, and are able to respond to suggestions
for specific material.

We
develop and supply:
 visual brainteasers,
 attention tests, 'suspense'
games for advertising,
 recreational mathematic
games for very particular readers…
Our work is in English, Italian and French.

We
also write special puzzle stories involving peculiar characters:
elves, detectives, or mad scientists, dealing with enigmas
and secrets that have to be solved or deciphered... Story
1 | Story
2

Enigmas
from the Elves
At the beginning of 2006, the Elf Leto started
as a cartoon character involved in a number of impossible situations
where, without the aid of supernatural powers, he cleverly
solves any difficulties using just logic and intuition. The
character was invented by Mauro Gaffo, the story text is currently
written by G.
Sarcone (Archimedes' Lab) and the strip drawn
by the comic illustrator Riccardo
Crosa. You can find a new adventure of the Elf
Leto in BrainTrainer magazine
every month.

Gianni
A. Sarcone and Marie-Jo Waeber, the founders and the editors
of Archimedes' Lab, are freelance writers, popularizers and illustrators [their
profiles, their
bibliography].Experts in mind games and brain training,
they are particularly involved in cognitive sciences (teaching
methodology, creativity and communication) and have written
numerous trade books on topics ranging from optical illusions
to visual and critical thinking puzzles. G. Sarcone is also
a leading authority on visual perception, he was one
of the judges at the third "Best Visual
Illusion of the Year Contest" held in Sarasota, Florida
[more
accolades].